World Cup fever takes root on the South Shore

People around the South Shore are definitely interested in the World Cup, but many of them are rooting for teams other than the United States.

Cody Shepard The Enterprise @cshepard_ENT

Zona Sul Churrascaria was filled wall-to-wall with soccer fans on Saturday with bright yellow and green jerseys as Brazil played Chile for a spot in the World Cup quarterfinal.

The scene was very different at the Brazilian restaurant in Quincy on Sunday as the Netherlands played Mexico and only a few people were watching the game at the bar.

Soccer isn’t the most popular sport in the United States, but when the World Cup rolls around every four years, all eyes are on the sport most countries call football.

The U.S. men’s national team recently advanced to the Round of 16, where if you win, you advance and if you lose, you go home. The U.S. will battle Belgium Tuesday in this knockout round. Some people consider this the beginning of the World Cup, like Jeffrey Santos, of Quincy, who was watching Sunday’s game at Zona Sul Churrascaria with Marcelo Correa, also of Quincy.

Santos, who plays in an over-40 soccer league at UMass Boston, was born in Brazil and moved to the United States a year ago. He is rooting for Brazil to win the World Cup, but said he was nervous they would not make it to the quarterfinal when it took penalty kicks to beat Chile on Saturday afternoon.

“When it was in extra time, there were two minutes left and Chile hit the crossbar, I almost had a heart attack,” he said. “No one expected it to be an easy game. We were scared, but we are very confident.”

Correa was also born in Brazil, but moved to the United States when he was 16. Although he is rooting for Brazil to make it to the final, he would like to see the U.S. there as well.

“If Brazil and the U.S. play, it doesn’t matter to me who wins,” Correa said. “There’s no favoritism there.”

If the United States doesn’t make it to the final, Correa and Santos would like to see Brazil face off against Argentina.

“That’s like the Yankees and the Red Sox,” Correa said. “It’s the equivalent of that rivalry for us.”

Mina Khalil, of Abington, is from Egypt, but moved to the United States in 2010. He was rooting for the Netherlands on Sunday and said at the Brazilian bar that he wanted Chile to beat Brazil on Saturday.

He is rooting for Germany, but would like to see the U.S. win the World Cup.

“I wish that USA would be the champion, but you have to be realistic,” Khalil said. “But nothing is impossible.” Defying expectations, the U.S. emerged from what was called the “Group of Death” to secure their place as one of the top 16 teams in the World Cup. They beat Ghana, tied Portugal and lost to Germany to advance.

Khalil said he works five days a week, so he can’t watch many of the games on television, but said he closely follows all of the games on his iPhone and iPad. He has downloaded a few apps to help him stay up to date on what is happening.

Khalil, like Correa and Santons, said he thinks the United States can beat Belgium when they play at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

“If they play as well as they played against Portugal, the U.S. will beat Belgium,” he said.

The United States tied Portugal, 2-2, on Sunday, June 22. The U.S. led, 2-1, until the final minute of stoppage time, when Portugal evened the score.

Khalil said he is realistic about the United States’ chances of winning, but that anything can happen.

“In our country, we call the football a round magician,” he said. “You don’t know what will happen.”

In the United States, the World Cup elevates the public’s interest in soccer, a sport that is the most popular worldwide.

Correa said during the World Cup, soccer becomes the main event and that’s why so many people watch the games.

“In most countries, it’s the number one sport. During the World Cup, it becomes the main event here,” he said. “It absolutely gives you an insight into other countries.”

Daniel Brandao, of Dorchester, who was playing soccer with two of his sons and his grandson at Joe Moakley Park in South Boston on Sunday, agrees that soccer is growing in the United States.

“You see it with Major League Soccer, soccer is getting bigger in the U.S.,” Brandao said.

His favorite team, Portugal, was eliminated, so he would like to see the United States win the World Cup.

“The U.S. doesn’t have a lot of good players, but they have good spirit, which I saw against Portugal. And that’s important,” he said. “Anything is possible in the World Cup.”

Brandao said this year’s U.S. team is better than previous years, but they don’t have a star player like many other countries.

“You don’t have a Messi. You don’t have a Neymar,” he said, referring to the stars of the Argentina and Brazil squads, respectively. “Things are growing, but it happens slowly.”

Brandao’s sons, Giovanni, 11, and Davonte, 8, are rooting for Brazil. When they were playing soccer on Sunday at the park, Davonte was pretending he was Portugal’s star forward Cristiano Ronaldo while Giovanni was playing as Messi.

His sons, however, are both fans of Neymar. They both said favorite players are a factor in choosing the team they root for.

Brandao’s grandson, Dario, 9, is rooting for the U.S.

“Since Portugal has been eliminated, I want my second favorite team,” he said. “I think the U.S. will make the semifinals.”